The sparkling, garish colors of summer in northern Ohio welcomed the historic sound and subsequent magic of Hall Of Fame icons, “Chicago”. The collective spirits of Chicago embrace litany of brilliance based on the decades down their chosen road. Their inclusion into the asylum commonly known as The Hall of Fame should have had them inducted years ago but the exposure of Woodstock in 1969 would have been monumental in that scenario but a ploy by Bill Graham (anotherCharlatans) would see their performance at Winterland canceled and the date moved to August 18th and the Yasgur’s farm episode would leave a void that was filled by a young Carlos Santana. This band known as The Big Thing, Chicago Transit Authority and eventually merely, “Chicago”, were the inveterate hippies of The Woodstock Nation and and Counter Culture amidst a turbulent, decadent era where we were all defined by the music that painted the tapestry of an entire generation. Powerful and poignant, there has never been a band of this magnitude that will always mesmerize a crowd regardless of capacity, “mirth over malice”. Chicago remains as an escape from the doldrums of “The mainstream”, now augmented with
a melange of brilliance, a coterie that segues from a fusion of psychedelic memories to a paradigm of tunes written by Robert Lamm, James Pankow (both now in Songwriters Hall Of Fame)and assorted others. The euphoria of yesteryear comes from the recesses of the mind if fortunate to watch this ensemble in 2021 (Rose Music Center, The Heights in Ohio). It’s been quite a journey from Piper’s Alley, (where I grew up), The Aragon Ballroom, kinetic Playground, Grant Park, Chicago Auditorium and precious few others. This was the euphoria and comaraderie intricately woven into the hippie-esque survivors of psychedelia when music was perceived as the common denominator for world peace.The pragmatic demeanor of those who work to make the ashes of yesteryear burn those embers and
the aura of San Francisco, Laurel Canyon, The Fillmores, The Avalon Ballroom, The Matrix, all the ghosts of those we most emulated and admired, return from the recesses of the mind when watching Chicago
play as they did long ago in an era where we all searched for personal identity while eradicating the dystopian attitude.The somber approach of “The mainstream”, 2021 is lost in the proverbial shuffle as we digress to
the barefoot and tie-dye are the aging mavens and burgeoning hordes that cling to the ideology and icons that we most admired and emulated.
As time becomes similar to sand in the hourglass, I have evolved into a docent of the times, a noted historian of treasured moments, "The Parables of Chicago”seem to ring in my head as the ghosts of the band bristle in the wind with Chicago as they are now in 2021. The soirees of decades past will continue as the band marches with the discourse of one of the truly innovative, acknowledged and respected bands in the history of recorded music. Bells will ring down their chosen road, tomes will be written, the chortling of today will be reminiscent of all the years when “Chicago”made all the hearts smile. In conclusion, a very antiquated axiom comes to mind. To paraphrase, ”If you know not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee”.
(The best live performance I have seen in a decade)
Cheers
Don Aters - 7/28/21
